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I ordered Cassis Pearl mud guards from anythingtoyota and they came from Texas dealer. Perfect color match and easy to install.
Any thought about that?
Results: The chip was the size of a small pea, on the dirver's side and about 10 cm (4") up from the dash. It had 2 cracks radiating horizontally from it about 1 cm long each. After the Safelite fix, the cracks disappeared completely, and the chip became very difficult to see unless you know where it used to be. The repair is nearly as good as the original glass, and we get to keep our original windshield (a plus if you're worried about leaks after replacement).
All-in-all, if you have to have a rock chip, this is the best way to go. But, the initial event was sickening, especially when we just had gotten the car roof repainted.
But, that's another sad story...
In the rear, you will need to raise the body with a jack, or remove the wheel, for drill access. Being lazy, I elected to use a jack and leave the wheel in place.
Perhaps it was there before, and I never noticed it.
Could someone help me out please. Could you place your Avalon in Neutral or Park with the radio off and with the engine running, blip the gas pedal. There seems to be a bit of a delay between the time the gas pedal is depressed and the engine responds. During this "lag time", please let me know if:
1) your car has this lag time and
2) whether your car makes a pronounced "CH" sound from under the hood immediately after blipping the gas pedal.
I'd appreciate it.
Maybe I don't have a problem except becoming hypersensitive, but it would be helpful for me to know whether my car is typical or not!
Thanks, all.
When you had that surging incident, were you driving in "D" or in "S"?
havalongavalon
There wasn't really a surge. As I stepped on the gas the tranny shifted into neutral instead of into a lower gear, so the engine rpms shot up to about 5,000rpm before I realized what had happened and pulled over to the side of the road. It was so sudden that I thought that something had broken in the transmission.
I just hope this doesn't happen again - especially when pulling across or in front of traffic.
Unfortunately my confidence in this vehicle is eroding.
If you see my trusty old '02 Avalon anywhere, please tell her to come home, and tell her that this time I'll love her for ever...
I put my 06 through the procedure you just explained. I warmed my car up in the garage,
placed it in neutral (parking brake on of course),
opened the hood and stood outside my open drivers
door. I blipped the gas pedal like you explained. The "CH" sound you described sounds like a rush of air going through a tube. Kinda sounded like the noise you'd hear if you were pushing alot of air through a large blow dart tube. The engine hesitated slightly then revved up. The noise happened each and every time along with the hesitation. Sounded pretty normal to me. I know the engine revs fast at start up to help obtain the ULEV rating. If what I heard was a rush of air, I'll bet it has something to do with ULEV also.
Well, not exactly...
There have been lots of reports of engine over-reving related to the engine/throttle hesitation symptom.
Remember what often happens when you try to accelerate in a vehicle with a manual transmission that is in too high of a gear to produce enough torque (via gear reduction) on the output shaft to move the vehicle forward at the desired rate.
The clutch slips.....
So the transaxle in question did not necessarily have to be in neutral, only a high enough gear not to be able to produce enough torque to the drive wheels.
And I think we already know, acknowledge, that part of the engine/throttle hesitation symptom is the result of the ECU upshifting the transaxle just prior to the driver "developing" a need to go quickly from a coastdown circumstance to one of acceleration.
Before I obtained the 2001 and 2004 Lexus RX300/330 shop manuals and learned what is actually happening I also thought the transaxle was shifting into neutral, rather than simply upshifting, during coastdown situations.
GM .Buick, and Cadillac have good transmissions and cost about 10k less go figure.
I suspect that other upscale GM products such as Buick followed suite.
Maybe all GM products will now follow Cadillac's current practice of never again building FWD or front torque biased AWD vehicles.
In advertising the AWD/4WD aspects of the GS300, IS300 and the 4runner, Toyota and Lexus seem to be implicitly acknowledging the circumstances wherein FWD and/or front biased AWD are potentially hazardous.
All three of these models remove or reduce engine drive torque to the front wheels during stearing manuevers or if the yaw sensor signal indicates loss of directional control is threatened.
Now if they would just realize that the VSC system could be used to prevent ABS activation unless loss of direction control is threatened I would be a happy man.
You were quick to read and respond to my suggestion of an alternative mechanical fault; but by then I had retracted my message #9957. Thanks for your clear explanation, I agree that this could have happened to alan_s.
havalongavalon
Where would I go to get them done?
zekeman1
The valve is open at idle, shortening the effective intake duct length. Supposedly, this dual-length system optimizes engine efficiency over a wider range of operating conditions. As the valve approaches the fully closed position, airflow velocity through it would increase ("whoosh"), then diminish once it has closed. Does that come close to describing the sound you hear?
The Avalon uses a motor instead of a vacuum diaphram actuator, which might account for the delay. The motor is mounted at the end of the intake manifold that is opposite the intake duct.
I also had a 97 Maxima. As you know, there is no such thing as lag with those VQ engines. Hit the gas and the good old fashioned cable opens the throttle without delay. Even with the new 3.5 VQ with drive by wire, there is no discernable delay. I guess Toyota have some learning to do.
I have a Touring, a little more tightly sprung and therefore, more 'feel' with those front wheels are actually doing - but still difficult to discern any tugging as I feel with my wife's Altima, for example. My point - Toyota is using that 'hesitation' or slippage as a means to minimize what the laws of physics say must happen.
And using a silly computer to do it. I have yet to hear anybody say anything about mechanical component failures in the Av tranny (see TL) and it may just be too early to tell. As wwest seems to suggest, however, the trans may be working as it is supposed to! VSC not the answer, though - that's even more electronic nannies we don't need!
thanks anyway :sick:
Just thought you might like to see a customized Avalon which was on display at the 2005 SEMA ( specialty equipment market association )show recently held in Las Vegas. Click onto canadiandriver.com and then click on the SEMA report. The Avalon is gorgeous and has a bright Gold paint finish. The grillwork makes it look more like an Audi.
Cheers
Gladiator99
Have a mouse in your pocket, do you?
WE....
I firmly believe the clear majority of the driving population NEEDS every electronic nanny that can be thought up.
My 2001 Porsche C4 has PSM, Porsche's version of VSC. The nice thing about Porsche's implementation is that it gives the drivers a few milliseconds to react and take the corrective action themselves. On the track last January at Daytona it never activated even once since I was quick to crank int corrective stearing the instant I felt the rear end begin to swing out.
But I would NEVER want Porsche's version to be implemented on a FWD or front biased AWD vehicle.
As far as seeing the street names just use the control panel to ZOOM IN & OUT. I would recommend browsing the Navigation Quick Guide for a brief tutorial on how to use the navigation system; the navigation owners manual will explain the system more in despth. I am sure there was a learning curve for you portable unit too.
As far as XM is concerned the current technology never had specifications for more than 10 charachters. At the most only RDS stations offered something that would even come close to filling up the display with information. In the future, with the advent of MP3 ID tag labels, satellite radio (and more recently) IPOD, larger charachter displays will undoubtedly be incorporated into future offerings.
Lastly I agree with calling Toyota with your comments and suggestions. That is another way they can better understand what is important to users such as ourselves.
I have seen some 05 install instructions on this site, I guess i am just curious as I am preparing to buy the radio kit in the near future, I just have not decided if I am going to do it myself or pay them...
I no nothing of the customs in your country. Here, it helps to bring a small gift of pastry ("a box of donuts") for the service person to share with the technicians. Perhaps you have some equivalent gesture at your diaposal.
zekeman1
And, then, you start having incidences of inexplicable occurrences maybe like alans' transmission malfunction. Who knows what happened or why - possibly not anything to do with the trans itself - an electronic glitch, perhaps - BMWs are infested with them.
There is no question that technology has greatly improved the overall efficiency, reliability, and safety of the cars we drive - but, I seriously wonder if it is going too far?
Thanks